Optical fibre networks that bring 10Gbit/s data rates to the home seem set to become a reality. That is likely to be the message coming from the Broadband World Forum in Paris this week.
The standards process has move ahead and two new standards for 10G PON fibre networks should be ratified this year.
These are XGPON and 10GEPON, which will support an asymmetric 10Gbit/s on the downstream and 1.25Gbps on the upstream.
According to Stephen King, CEO of optical communications specialists Phyworks, it makes sense to move quickly to 10Gbit/s symmetric systems.
"It offers greater economies of scale by allowing more splits in the network (more houses reached from a hub) and of course far greater traffic handling than anything we know today," said King.
The technology is already being demonstrated which will bring 10Gbit/s data rates to the home.
"Japan is already looking to make a move to 10GEPON and the world's first 10GEPON demonstrator has already been announced - by a UK company too," said King.
But the big opportunity for GPON next year is certainly China. After all, the GPON specification is based on the ITU G.984 GPON recommendation and is tailored for the Chinese passive optical networks market.
China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom are upgrading their networks to provide high-speed broadband and high-definition IPTV services in Anhui, Guangdong, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Hubei, Liaoning, Shandong, Shanghai and Sichuan provinces.
Ericsson and Broadcom have announced supply contracts in China in the last few months.
According to Greg Fischer, v-p and general manager of Broadcom's Carrier Access line of business: "The global GPON standard provides next generation FTTH and FTTN opportunities for China."